Don't spend £30 on a milbanks bag. RIP OFF!

[RAPPLEBY2000]

I was talking to someone about milbanks and how good they are and just realised how much they are getting flogged for today!

£30

what a rip off!

it's a very simple canvas bag, anyone can make one!

please before buyinga milbanks bag, reconsider!

buy 1 ft square of untreated tightweave canvas, sew the sides together (to make a tube), and sew along one end (to make a small bag) 6" x1ft add a loop of cord at the top and hey presto you own a milbanks bag, that's all they are! really!

the whole process will cost you (needle and thread included) in total all of a fiver! 10 at the most!


i have 2 genuine milbanks bags at home both cost me no more than £2 from army surplus, 1 used (i use for demo's), 1 brand new.
you'll be lucky to find one for that price but please they are not worth £30!!!

 

[Spacemonkey]

Jees, next you'll say not to buy a £250 name branded knife when a £10 Mora would do? Hang on, wait a minute.....

 

[ozymandias]

the inside pocket of a dpm windproof smock works even better apparently, so go pick up some smock cutoffs from your local army surplus for about 50p and make one that works even better than the 30 quid one- plus its lighter, so you can carry 3 for the price of one, so to speak.

 

[dommyracer]

Who the hell is selling them for £30 ??

 

[JohnC]

How about the iodine and anti iodine taste tabs? can you get them from chemists? What kind of weight of canvas seems right?

 

[Graham_S]

a millbank bag does not sterilise the water, it's just for filtering out sediment.
any close weave fabric will do it.
the sterilising comes from chemical treatment/boiling.

 

[andyn]

Who the hell is selling them for £30 ??

Just what i was wondering. I paid £10 for mine brand new only a month or so ago and that came with iodine and neutralising powder AND a cool bag to put it all in

 

[wildrover]

where did you get it from?
I was thinking of buying one but I have to say I don't fancy spending £30

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

I didn't buy any i already have two! (for alot less!)
I'm just warning those that want the right gear but mabey don't know what it should cost!

Nomad are selling the Milbanks bags on thier own at £30!

They used to sell:

with iodine and neutralising powder AND a cool bag to put it all in

for £15.

a millbank bag does not sterilise the water, it's just for filtering out sediment.
any close weave fabric will do it.
the sterilising comes from chemical treatment/boiling.

yup totally! clothing, hankerchief, bandadge, grass, paper, pretty much anything close weave will filter water to some extent, but you will still ned to boil or chemically treat the water to kill microscopic bugs

someone goes and put's a milbank bag it in a book and suddenly the price goes up, what a supprise

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

as for the knives, or any other unrealistically "expensive" kit...

Jees, next you'll say not to buy a £250 name branded knife

yes they're expensive (and far better than the cheap version) but a skilled craftsperson did spend time and skill perfecting the edge for something that is in one sense an art form in another it's a working tool.

on the other hand Milbanks bags are a folded and sewn piece of canvas a 20-30 second sewing job if that!

how much profit are they making on £30? :Thinkingo
must be near to....erm......£30!

i just looked at the price of canvas, un-treated plain canvas comes up at £5 per meter square.
you could make 4 milbanks bags out of that!

keep 1 sell the other 3 for £2 or £3 and hey you even have a profit!


sorry about the ranting, it just get's on my nerves when people are ripped off like this.

 

[richardnhunt]

Yep - I'm convinced. Where can you buy untreated plain canvas?

Rich

 

[Marts]

Yep - I'm convinced. Where can you buy untreated plain canvas?

Rich

Loads of places


Here's the first I found on Goooooogle

http://www.whaleys-bradford.ltd.uk/products.cfm?catID=3

 

[Spacemonkey]

a millbank bag does not sterilise the water, it's just for filtering out sediment.
any close weave fabric will do it.
.

Now I know what to do with all my ventile offcuts!!!

Agreed about the knives. I would pay whatever was asked for a well made sword, but for a knife that is just a tool? Any more than £30 and I would be too scared to use it!! £250 is a lot of money for an ornament, although I do understand why people would pay that money. After all, I can't go around chopping heads off with a £1500 katana, can I? :swordfigh

 

[Tadpole]

They did an experiment on TV here in Australia where they boiled river water then checked it out using a powerful microscope, they actually found that the boiling made the blue green algae content more 'active' (not sure the right word but basically worse).

Then they tried filtering the water through the leg of a pair of jeans tied in a knot and filled with charcoal. That removed almost all the problems, except viruses. But a second stage of boiling dealt with them.

http://health.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=118614

Blue green algae are not really algae, but a form of photosynthetic bacteria, the bacteria likes still water and warm temperatures to grow in. The toxins they give of are considered to be thermo-stable; they can stand very high temperatures, and are not destroyed by boiling the water.

 

[British Red]

Now I know what to do with all my ventile offcuts!!!

Agreed about the knives. I would pay whatever was asked for a well made sword, but for a knife that is just a tool? Any more than £30 and I would be too scared to use it!! £250 is a lot of money for an ornament, although I do understand why people would pay that money. After all, I can't go around chopping heads off with a £1500 katana, can I? :swordfigh

Well no..its generally considered a faux pas in polite society. Especially if they bleed on the rugs old boy

Some people seem to enjoy essays in the art of knife making that never get used for fear of runing their collector status. Bit like wine you don't drink in my book, but each to his own say I. Far be it from me to criticise someone else's interests.

Red

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

oh!....

something else to worry about!



i guess make an indian well, filter the stuff like crazy, iodine it, boil it and hope for the best!

or just don't collect water from there!

the next stage would be condensing it......let's not go there!

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

you mean as in making a still ?!

 

[British Red]

Evening Mr Da'P. Not sleeping again we see - glass of "something like a tonic wine - full of herbs and fruits"?

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

Evening Mr Da'P. Not sleeping again we see - glass of "something like a tonic wine - full of herbs and fruits"?

Thank you kind Sir, as long as it's been filter'd 1st

Got to be up in 6 1/2 hours as well

 

[British Red]

Wish I did - stil sick...twice filtered?...its organic...practically fruit and veg...you only need 4 portions tomorrow